India and EU establish Investment Facilitation Mechanism

Q. India and EU have established which mechanism for furthering trade ties?- Published on 17 Jul 17

a. Investment Facilitation Mechanism

b. International Facilitation Mechanism

c. Global Facilitation Mechanism

d. EU Facilitation Mechanism

ANSWER: Investment Facilitation Mechanism

India and European Union (EU) have established Investment Facilitation Mechanism (IFM) for EU Investments in India.

The mechanism will allow for a close coordination between EU and India with an aim to promote and facilitate EU investment in India.

Ease of doing business is a fundamental priority of the Indian Government’s Make in India Campaign and the establishment of IFM for facilitating EU investments in India is another step to achieve this goal.

The IFM builds on the Joint Statement of the 13th EU-India Summit held in Brussels in March 2016, where the EU had welcomed India's readiness to establish such a mechanism and leaders from both sides had reaffirmed their shared commitment to oppose protectionism and to work in favour of a fair, transparent and rule-based trade and investment environment.

As part of the IFM, the EU Delegation to India and the DIPP will hold regular high level meetings to assess and facilitate “ease of doing business” for EU investors in India.

This will include identifying and putting in place solutions to procedural impediments faced by EU companies and investors in establishing or running their operations in India. Invest India, the Indian government's official Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency, will also be part of the IFM.

It will create a single-window entry point for EU companies that need assistance for their investments at the central or state level.

The DIPP will also facilitate participation of other relevant ministries and authorities on a case-to-case basis.

The EU is the largest foreign investor in India and this initiative helps ensuring a more robust, effective and predictable business environment for the EU investors."

Trade and Investment are key elements of the EU-India Strategic Partnership launched in 2004.

Along with being the first trade partner in goods and services, EU is one of the biggest provider of foreign investment in India, with a stock exceeding $81.52 billion (more than Rs 4.4 lakh crores) as of March 2017, the statement said.

There are currently more than 6,000 EU companies present in India, providing direct and indirect employment to over 6 million people.